Karenna's Legacy
by Butterfly Hippie
Summary: Clockwork's daughter was attacked by Dark Danny, leaving her mysteriously paralyzed and stuck in a human form. When she comes to Casper High, how will Danny feel about him, in a sense, being the reason she's handicapped? Sams POV
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

It was just a normal day...the day we met Karenna.

She walked-or rather, _rolled_ into our English class, looking slightly nervous. She was sitting in a manual wheelchair, a sturdy black one with pink swirls all over it. Her eyes were hazel, and her light brown hair was pulled back in an elegant bun at the nape of her neck.

"Is...this Mr. Lancer's class?" she spoke quietly. Mr. Lancer turned around, a little startled. He hadn't realized anybody had come in. His expression of slight surprise was replaced by looks of shock, curiosity, and pity. In that order.

"Why...yes it is!" Mr. Lancer spoke rapidly, embarrassed, and a little uncomfortable, around this handicapped girl who was currently gazing up at him with an expression that I couldn't distinguish on her face. Anger, maybe? Sadness? A little bit of both?

"Take a seat." Lancer started, but stopped as he realized there was no desk wide enough to accommodate Karenna's wheelchair. Finally, after gazing helplessly at his class, most of whom were staring at Karenna's chair, Lancer started to speak again.

"I didn't get anything about a new student...I'm afraid there's no desk big enough for your...your..." he seemed to have trouble saying the world _wheelchair_. Karenna's face slowly darkened until it resembled a thundercloud. Her eyes flashed angrily and glared at poor Mr. Lancer, who was still stuttering away.

"Just say it! Just say _wheelchair_! Is that so hard!" Then, without a backward glance, she turned herself around and wheeled out of sight.

I stared after her for quite awhile. I didn't even know this girl...and yet somehow I felt connected to her. Finally I raised my hand. Lancer stopped in the middle of a sentence.

"Yes, Miss Manson?"

"May I be excused?" I asked. Lancer nodded.

"Yes, you may. But next time, kindly wait until I'm finished with my sentence." I barely heard him. I was already out the door, jogging in the direction that the girl had gone.

I found Karenna crying in the nearest girls bathroom. One of the stalls was slightly caved in. It was obvious that she had tried to get into the stall, but found her chair couldn't fit.

"I suppose Lancer sent you? To check on the little crippled baby who can't take care of herself?" she snapped at me. I gaped at her for a second, taken aback.

I finally closed my big mouth, and told her "No. I came because I wanted to." Karenna was silent for a minute, then spoke.

"Why can't people-and society-accept me the way I am? Why are there people like Mr. Lancer, who seem unable to comprehend that there _are_ imperfect people in this world? Why are there never desks wide enough? Why are there never stalls big enough? It's like people are trying to pretend we don't exist!" She started crying harder than ever. I sat there, feeling guilty because I couldn't think of anything to say. Finally she stopped crying, took a deep breath, and asked me "So...what's your name?"

"Sam Manson." I replied. She smiled.

"I'm Karenna. Karenna Clockwork." And that was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

A/N: Well, I'm making a new story! I'm at a bit of a loss w/ Halfa All the Way, don't know exactly what I want to do w/ it. Set A Course for Freedom will probably be updated soon, just uploaded Ch. 6. Circle of Light I've kinda lost interest in, but will continue anyway. Crippled Body, Treasured Soul I've kind of got writers block on. And I think those are all my stories you need to know about! Please review and tell me what you think of this story!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"_Clockwork_?" Danny repeated when I told him and Tucker about our conversation in the bathroom at lunch. Tucker also seemed mildly interested, although it was hard to tell because, as always, he was staring down at his PDA.

"You don't think this has anything to do with..." Danny lowered his voice so only me and Tucker could hear him. "...Dark Danny?" I shook my head.

"No...no, I don't think so. Clockwork must be a common last name." I didn't sound convinced. And I wasn't. Danny and Tucker didn't look convinced either, but they let it go.

I glanced over at where Karenna was sitting by herself, nibbling at the disgusting cafeteria lunch. "Guys, let's invite her to sit with us." Danny shrugged, and Tucker looked like he couldn't care less. So I went over to Karenna.

"Um...hi, Karenna." Karenna looked up in surprise.

"Oh! Hi, Sam." I smiled.

"Hey, Karenna, I was wondering...do you want to sit with me and my friends over there?" I gestured to the table where Danny and Tucker were sitting. Karenna smiled, this time revealing bright blue braces which I hadn't noticed before. "Sure." And she swiftly wheeled over to our table, positioning herself at the end of the long table.

"Hey." she said. Danny and Tucker waved, then went back to one of their long and stupid boyish discussions. I scowled at them.

"Karenna, these are my friends Tucker Foley and Danny Fenton." Karenna's eyes widened. "_Danny Fenton_?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, why?" Karenna smiled again, only this time it was a knowing smile.

"Danny Fenton, a.k.a Danny Phantom. Pleased to meet you. I'm Clockwork's daughter Karenna." _That_ caught the boys' attention.

"You're Clockwork's _daughter_?" Danny yelled. I motioned for Danny to calm down, since we were attracting stares from just about everyone in the cafeteria. He shot me one of those infuriating _I told you so_ looks.

"Yes..." Danny looked puzzled. "But then...why aren't you a ghost?"

"Ah...Danny. It is, in a sense, because of you, that I am this way." Comprehension immediately dawned on Danny's face.

"Dark Danny." he growled. "What did he do to you?" Karenna sighed.

"I was searching through my father's things a few months ago when I accidentally released Dark Danny. Angry at being defeated and held in captivity for so long, he immediately started attacking me. My father eventually managed to recapture him, but by then it was too late to reverse what Dark Danny had done to me. Something he did paralyzed me from the waist down, and gave me a permanent human form. Now my father has sent me into the mortal world to warn you, Danny Phantom, of something more great and terrible than ever before."

"What is this..._something_?" Danny pressed. But Karenna just shook her head. "The time is not right. I cannot say." The three of us exchanged looks, but we knew that there was no hope in badgering poor Karenna for more information.

Clockwork looked at the scene unfolding in front of him. "Very good, Karenna. I have taught you well." he murmured. Things were going right, exactly as planned. Suddenly the two Observants appeared behind him.

"Why doesn't she warn him now? If she does not tell him soon, it will be too late! The fate of the world is resting on your daughter's shoulders, Clockwork! Do you really want little Karenna being blamed for the destruction of the mortal world?" one of the Observants complained. Clockwork turned around slowly.

"That's the problem with you Observants. All you do is observe." he said with a hint of amusement in his voice, quoting himself from that time when they had been watching Danny take the answers to the CAT.

"Karenna knows what she's doing." Clockwork assured them. "And so do I." The Observants were annoyed, but they knew it was futile trying to argue with Clockwork. With him, things had a mysterious way of falling into place. The Observants vanished, leaving Clockwork to further watch his daughter in peace.

A/N: Two chapters in one day! Wow I'm on a roll. So...How'd you like it? Hmmm? Well? What are you waiting for! REVIEW!


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Over the next few weeks we hung out with Karenna more than ever. She was feisty and fun. But one thing still nagged in the back of my mind, and I knew Danny was thinking about it too: _What had Karenna come to warn us about?_

Sure, we asked her many, many times, until she was pretty annoyed at us. But she refused to tell us. All she would say was "The time is not right. You will know when the time comes."

The weather seemed to go Goth on us as the weeks went on. By that, I mean it became increasingly cloudy and gloomy. A chilly mist lingered over Amity Park, and there was no sign of it lifting soon. When I commented on this to Karenna, she had a knowing smile on her face, like she knew the cause of this weather, but didn't want to disclose it.

"That's _it_!" Danny screamed in frustration one day as he slammed his books down on our usual lunch table. "I've got tests in every subject this week, yet I still have mounds of homework to do, and I haven't had time to have any fun at all lately! I barely have time to _breathe_, for god's sake!"

"Come to think of it, I've been feeling the same way lately." I mused. Tucker looked up from his PDA.

"Yeah, me too! I haven't even had the energy to download new programs onto my PDA!" We all stared at him. _Tucker_, not feeling up to downloading? Something was definitely wrong. I looked around the cafeteria. Everybody seemed tired and lethargic. Even the most active and energetic kids were picking half-heartedly at their mystery meat. Even Karenna seemed to have lost the usual sparkle in her eyes. But she had that knowing smile on her face again. Danny noticed this too.

"Karenna Amethyst Clockwork!" he said, using Karenna's middle name. "You know what's going on, don't you? Tell me, and tell me NOW!"

Karenna sighed. "All right. The time has come. The Darkness is coming." I raised an eyebrow. Danny looked puzzled.

"What's the Darkness?" I asked. Karenna's face darkened.

"The Darkness is a monstrous dark. Created by Dark Danny before he was vanquished by my father, the Darkness creates misery and woe to all whom it touches. Eventually it creates enough sadness so that people start to do horrible things...and twist their futures into something evil and horrible. The Darkness then feeds on the fear and the sadness. As the Darkness grows bigger, Dark Danny becomes more and more powerful. Once the Darkness covers the country, Dark Danny will be able to break free of his prison and wreak havoc on the future once again. And when the Darkness covers the whole world, Dark Danny will have ultimate power. And only you, Danny Phantom, Dark Danny's younger self, have the power to defeat him...before it's too late."

We all stared at Karenna for a moment, then finally Danny spoke.

"But...how do I defeat him?" Karenna was silent, and then at last, she said

"Defeat the Darkness. The Darkness is the source of Dark Danny's power. If you defeat the Darkness...you defeat Dark Danny. He will become so weakened that it will be easy to capture him once again."

We were all very quiet for the rest of the day, thinking about Karenna's prediction. It was only later that something occurred to me.

"Hey, Karenna?" I cornered her by her locker later that day. She looked up.

"Yeah, Sam?" I took a deep breath.

"Karenna...your prediction before-about the Darkness...was that what you were sent here to warn us about?" Karenna slowly nodded.

"Yes." she said quietly. "And I have faith in Danny that he will vanquish his evil self...once and for all."

The image froze and Clockwork smiled. "Yes, my sweet Karenna. You have warned him. But he must act soon...or else there will no one who can stop Dark Danny. The fate of the future has shifted. It is in Danny's hands now."

A/N: How'd you like it? Don't you think I came up w/ a great middle name for Karenna? Karenna Amethyst Clockwork. I love it. All right, now REVIEW!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

For months, Danny, Tucker, and I mused over how to "defeat the Darkness". But, how could you defeat something that was nothing tangible, nothing corporeal, just...dark? A ghost enemy could be fought with photon blasts. The Darkness could not. We tried light, because Danny remembered that light weakened Johnny 13's "shadow". But it didn't work, and then we were out of ideas. It was obvious that Karenna knew the secret to defeating the Darkness, but she wouldn't tell us. Whenever we asked her all she would say was "I cannot reveal the secret. You must figure it out on your own."

Meanwhile, the Darkness was rapidly spreading, and happiness and cheer were nowhere to be found. We knew that it must be covering the whole country by now, and that Dark Danny would break out of his prison any day now. And we knew that when he broke free, he would come looking for his past self.

But when he did come, it was semi-unexpected. We were just sitting there, eating our lunches in the gloom, when Danny's ghost sense went off. Danny jumped up and changed into ghost form, instantly on alert for one of the usual ghosts, like maybe Skulker or the Box Ghost. But when the ghost came into sight, we were surprised. It was Dark Danny, wearing something on his face that hadn't been seen in our town in months: a big, wide smile. Actually, it was more like a self-satisfied smirk.

"You!" Danny spat the world out angrily. Dark Danny's smirk widened. "Yes, Danny, it's me. What? Weren't you expecting me? Didn't your little crippled friend warn you I was coming? Yes, she is _quite_ the tattletale."

"Karenna is _not_ a tattletale." Danny said through gritted teeth. "And yes, she _did_ warn me."

"So, Danny, what do you think of my creation, the Darkness?" Dark Danny said lazily, waving a hand around at all the gloom and fog surrounding us. "It's working perfectly. It's forcing everyone to be miserable...and thus do horrible things to themselves. In fact, it's even working on your-or should I say_ my_-friend Tucker." Danny stopped at this one, in the midst of firing a photon blast.

"Tucker?" he asked sharply. "_What did you do to him!_" Dark Danny smirked. "Go see for yourself." he said, in a slightly amused tone. Without further ado, I

sprinted out the cafeteria door, through the thick fog, towards Tucker's house. Danny followed at my heels, and Karenna on his heels.

When we got to Tucker's house, the door was open. The three of us flew through it, up the stairs, to Tucker's room. What we saw there was not a pretty sight.

Tucker was lying on his back, blood forming a puddle on the floor. Beside him was a knife. It was clear what had happened.

"Oh...my...god." I breathed. Karenna looked horrorstricken. It was clear that she hadn't actually seen the effects of the Darkness before. Danny knelt down to check Tucker's pulse, while I just stood there in shock.

There was a loud cackle from behind us. Dark Danny had followed us to Tucker's.

"Intriguing, isn't it?" he said dryly. "How my creation can drive a young boy with his whole life ahead of him to suicide? Soon everybody in the world will be feeling depressed and miserable-while I will be the strongest and the happiest ghost in the world!"

Karenna glared at Dark Danny. Her eyes flashed and she looked madder than I'd ever seen her.

"You are truly evil." she said quietly, her voice trembling. "You attacked me and left me in this human form...and a paralyzed one at that. You left me unable to use the lower half of my body...you ruined my life." Dark Danny threw his head back and laughed.

"Do you think I _care_?" he said incredulously. "I've ruined many lives in my rampage. I have no emotion, none of those weighty human feelings. I am a ghost, Karenna. You should know by now that not all ghosts are nice...but then again, even your father wasn't all that nice...to me anyway."

"Of course he was mean to you," Karenna shouted. "Because you were wreaking havoc on the future! And you attacked me, his only daughter." Dark Danny smiled.

"And I enjoyed it very much. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have more misery and fear to spread. Oh, and Danny? This is far from over." He swooped out of the room, leaving the three of us and Tucker's bleeding body.

We stared after Dark Danny. He was right. This was far from over.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"He's breathing." Danny said in relief some hours later.

We had taken Tucker to the nearest hospital, and although we were a little worried what they might do to him while under the effects of the Darkness, they seemed to be doing a good job. At least, they had him breathing again. However, Tucker was still in a deep coma.

The three of us sat in the hospital waiting room, in a somewhat shocked state. Danny and I clung to each other closely. Karenna had only known Tucker for a few months. Danny and me, we'd known him for almost our entire lives.

I guess we were in such a state of shock that we didn't notice when Karenna went missing. All I know is that after a few hours, Danny looked around the room and said

"Hey, has anybody seen Karenna?" I sat up and looked around. Sure enough, Karenna was nowhere in sight.

"She was here a few minutes ago..." I remembered. Just then, Danny's ghost sense went off and Clockwork appeared out of nowhere.

"You must listen to me, there isn't much time!" he said quickly. He looked very distressed. "Dark Danny has kidnapped Karenna and taken her a year into the past. I need you to go into the past and find her. Please...I need you to save her. She's my only daughter...my baby." Tears were now rolling down Clockwork's cheeks. I hadn't realized that ghosts could cry.

Danny stood up. "We'll do it, Clockwork!" he said firmly. I agreed. Karenna had become one of our best friends. We couldn't _not_ save her.

"Very well then." Clockwork reached into the folds of his robes and pulled out three time medals on dark blue ribbons. He handed two to Danny and one to me.

"Give the third medal to Karenna when you find her. Good luck." And with a swish of his cloak, Clockwork was gone. Danny put his medal on, then helped me put mine on. And then...we were in the past.

We were in Clockwork's lab. Clockwork's lab a year ago looked much the same as his present-day lab, with the absence of a few objects. Clockwork was in the corner, watching something on his screen, while the past Karenna was fiddling with something. I gaped at the past Karenna.

She was hovering a few feet above the ground. Long brown hair tumbled down her back, and she had the traditional green ghostly outline. I had become so used to Karenna's wheelchair and human form that I'd kind of forgotten she hadn't always been that way. _This must have been before the attack_, I thought.

Just then a time porthole opened up, and the present-day, wheelchair-bound Karenna appeared in the room. Danny grabbed the back of my shirt and pulled me back, indicating that now wouldn't exactly be the best time for us to barge in and take Karenna back to the future.

The past Karenna looked and saw her future self. Clockwork said and did nothing, but I saw a hint of a smile on his face, like he knew that this was going to happen.

The past and future Karenna stared at each other for a minute, then finally the past Karenna spoke.

"Is that...are you..._me_?" The future Karenna nodded slowly.

"You...a year into the future." she said softly. This time it was awhile before the past Karenna spoke again. When she did, she spoke quietly, like she was a little afraid of what the answer might be.

"What the hell happened to me?" The future Karenna was silent for several minutes, obviously trying to figure out how to say this to her.

"A few months from now, you will be searching through your-or maybe I should say _my_-father's things and will accidentally release Dark Danny from his prison. Angry at being captured, he will attack you, leaving you paralyzed from the waist down, and in a permanent human form." Silent tears started flowing down both girls' faces, the past Karenna obviously scared of what she would very soon become, and the future Karenna in agony at seeing her pre-attack self.

"But I'm still _you_." said the future Karenna. "I still love to help Daddy in his work, I still love to explore and try new things...I'm still Karenna Clockwork. Just...a little different.

"Why didn't Daddy change my past so that the attack never happened?" The past Karenna whispered.

"The Observants wouldn't let him." replied the future Karenna. "They said it was against the rules to change his own daughter's past, even to prevent a horrible attack."

The future Karenna then caught sight of Danny and me, hidden in the corner. "I have to go." she said quietly. She came over to us and I helped her put the medal on. Just before she vanished into her own time, she said loudly and clearly

"Goodbye, past Karenna. We'll meet again...in time." Then she was gone. It was time for Danny and me to go back, too. I unclasped my medal, and Danny, his. Then, quite suddenly, we were in a dark, cool, quiet place. There was almost no noise, except the soft whispering of Clockwork, who was apparently in front of us.

"Thank you for saving my daughter. But now you must return to your original task. You must save the world from Dark Danny once again. And you must hurry, there isn't much time. The Darkness is creeping around the world. Very soon, it will cover the globe, and then it will be too late. You must discover the way to vanquish the Darkness.

"What is this place?" Danny asked.

"It is called the In-Between Place. It is the place in between the past and future, where all time-travelers must pass through before getting to another time. Now go, return to your own time. You must hurry, before Dark Danny takes over the world."

And then we were back in the hospital waiting room, our shoulders heavy with the task placed upon them.

A/N: Wow, that was a long chapter, almost two full pages. So what'd you think? Review plz!


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

When they got back to the waiting room, Karenna was already there. Her face looked as lit up as a Christmas tree with the huge grin that was spreading across it. Danny raised an eyebrow.

"What's got you so happy?" he asked sourly. He was not in a good mood. He was frustrated that they still didn't know how to defeat the Darkness, and they only had an hour left.

"Tucker woke up from his coma!" Karenna stuttered excitedly, tripping over her words in jubilation. Sam and Danny looked at each other and then at Karenna in disbelief before running towards Tucker's room, nearly running over a nurse in their haste.

"Oh, Tucker, you're awake!" Sam said happily. Tucker was sitting up in bed, various monitors beeping around him and all his wounds stitched up. Danny felt a surge of happiness course through him, and at that moment felt something on his face that he hadn't felt in a long time. Warmth. Sunlight.

Danny yanked the blinds on the window back, and found a ray of light shining in. It was a very small ray of light, and the rest of the town was still surrounded by the Darkness. But it was sunlight.

Sam grabbed Danny so hard and so fast he nearly fell over. Sam had a look of dawning comprehension on her face.

"Danny!" she said quickly. "We were happy that Tucker woke up from his coma, right?"

"Right..." Danny said warily, unsure of where she was going with this. Sam looked wildly excited, which was a rarity for the Goth girl.

"No, just hear me out. We were happy, then part of the Darkness went away. I can't believe I didn't think of it before. Danny, _what if happiness vanquishes the Darkness_?"

Danny stood there in shock for a minute. "Wow." he said. "That actually sort of made sense." He then turned to Karenna, who had that mysterious smile on her face again. But this time, she gave a long, slow nod.

"I knew it!" Sam looked pleased with herself. But a second later, the look turned into one of frustrated puzzlement.

"But how do we generate enough happiness to vanquish all of the Darkness?" she asked. Danny didn't have an answer. Then suddenly, an idea popped into his head.

"Maybe..." he said slowly. "Maybe we have to go back into our happiest memories."

"Yes." That was Karenna. "You figured it out. Now, I'm not sure how you get to your happiest memories, but if I know my dad, and I do, he'll have already done it. So...I guess just put on your time medals and see where they take you."

Danny shrugged, but he trusted Karenna wholeheartedly. After all, she was Clockwork's daughter. So he obediently put on his medal and found himself watching a five- year old Danny.

_He knew what this memory was_, Danny suddenly realized. This was the day he met Sam.

The five-year old Danny looked much like the present-day Danny. His already untidy black hair flopped into his large, loveable, bright blue eyes. He was already wearing his signature white and red T-shirt and jeans.

The younger Danny tugged his mother's apron. They were in the Fenton kitchen. "Mommy, I'm bored!" he whined. An almost a decade younger Maddie Fenton turned around.

"Why don't you go over to the new neighbors? They have a little girl just about your age." his mother suggested. The younger Danny made a face at being asked to play with a girl, but knew that his parents were too busy to play with him. And Jazz was up in her room, studying. At seven, she was already a brainiac.

"OK." The younger Danny trudged out of the house, with the present-day Danny trailing along behind.

They arrived at the Manson house, where movers were unloading furniture from a huge truck parked in front of the house. The younger Danny went up the steps and rang the doorbell. Danny ducked behind some bushes so no one would notice him. Sam's mother answered.

"Hi, my name is Danny Fenton and I live down the street." the five-year old Danny started. "Can I play with your daughter?" Sam's mother beamed.

"Look, Sammykins!" she said happily. "One of the neighbors is here to play with you!" A five-year old Sam peeked around her mother's legs. She was wearing a long, frilly skirt and a purple, lacy shirt. The present-day Danny shook his head. He had forgotten that Sam hadn't always been a Goth.

"Come, Sammykins, go on and play with your new friend, Danny." her mother coaxed. Sam reluctantly let go of her mother's legs and stepped onto the front porch.

"Hi." she said shyly. "My name is Samantha. But you can call me Sam." The two five-year olds went around to the backyard. Once again, the fourteen-year old Danny followed.

"Hey, Sam, wanna play tag?" Danny's younger self asked. Sam smiled.

"OK." The two children ran around the backyard for awhile. Then Sam tripped over a tree root and fell. She sat there crying and holding her knee.

"Did you get a booboo?" the young Danny asked, bending over and examining the injured knee.

"Y-yes." Sam sobbed. Danny looked at his new friend in concern.

"That's OK. I know how to fix it." Then the younger Danny bent over and kissed the scrape on Sam's knee. Sam stopped crying almost immediately.

"Thank you." she said shyly. The younger Danny took a corner of his shirt and wiped her tears. Then he held out a hand and pulled her to her feet.

"You're my hero." Sam proclaimed, giving the young Danny a kiss on the cheek. The young Danny blushed.

"Thank you. Hey Sam, do you wanna be my best friend?" Sam threw her arms around Danny in a tight hug.

"I would love to be your best friend!" The young Danny hugged her back.

"Then you can be my best friend. You're gonna be my best friend forever." The older Danny smiled. This memory was the beginning of a very special and beautiful friendship. Then Karenna's voice floated through his head.

_Danny? You there?_, it asked.

_Karenna? Is that you?_, Danny thought in surprise.

_No, it's someone else who has the power to project her voice and thoughts into the future_, she retorted sarcastically. _Geez, Danny, who else would it be?_

_I don't know! Give me a break!_

Danny could almost see Karenna rolling her eyes as she projected her thoughts.

_Forget it. Anyway, that memory's vanquished part of the Darkness, but it's not enough. You'll have to go to another happy memory._

_Huh? Oh, yeah._ Danny had almost forgotten why he was watching this memory.

_What? Have you forgotten about Dark Danny and the Darkness while you were watching your five-year-old self fall in love with Sam?_ Karenna's voice asked dryly.

_You know which memory I'm watching! Karenna!_

_Aw, lighten up. I couldn't resist projecting my mind there so I could see what your happy memory was._

"Remind me to kill you later." Danny muttered out loud. Karenna's laugh echoed in his thoughts.

_Whatever. Anyway, to go to another happy memory, just close your eyes and hold your time medal in your hands._

_Will you be watching?_ Danny thought warily.

_Well...not if you don't want me to. _Danny sighed.

_All right. I'm going now. AND DON'T YOU DARE WATCH!_

_Fine. I won't watch. Now go. The fate of the world depends on you. And on Sam._

Danny chuckled as he fingered his time medal. Karenna loved to tease him. He closed his eyes, held his medal tight, and prepared to enter another happy memory.

A/N: Well, this chapter definitely wins the prize for longest chapter I've ever written! It's about two and a half pages. And I couldn't resist putting some DxS in there. So, how'd you like it? I can't promise you an update on this story soon, because I have a zillion other stories I promised you I'd update soon, and I'm only one person. So, read, and review!


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

There was a cold, slightly clammy feeling, and then Danny was in another memory. He instantly recognized it as the Halloween he was eight, three years later then his previous memory.

The eight-year old Danny Fenton looked a little more mature. His face had elongated, and had lost some of its baby fat. His eyes no longer looked quite so large, but they were still loveable. His usual t-shirt and jeans were currently hidden behind a colorful Superman costume.

"Look, Mommy, I'm strong, just like the _real_ Superman!" the younger Danny exclaimed as he flexed his biceps. Maddie smiled. Her face had a few more wrinkles on it, but otherwise she looked the same as she did three years previously. Just then Jack came bounding up the stairs.

"You ready to go trick-or-treating, Danny?" he asked excitedly. His orange and black jumpsuit matched perfectly for the holiday. The younger Danny nodded excitedly.

"Yeah, Daddy. Let's go, let's go!" The eight-year old jumped around in his costume. The older Danny grinned. He had loved having a costume so much...Little did his eight-year old self know that he would eventually get a cool costume with a logo that he could wear all year around!

The older Danny followed his father and younger self down the street, where his Superman costume got many a compliment, and his candy basket grew heavier. The afternoon was slightly chilly, with a gentle breeze that made his Superman cape fly out behind him. Jack-O'-Lanterns gleamed from the doorsteps around them, and cardboard cutouts of ghosts, black cats, and witches stood on all the lawns. The leaves made a soft rustling sound as Danny and his father waded through them.

Finally they came to the Manson house. Sam, dressed as a fairy princess, was standing on the lawn in between her parents. The older Danny chuckled softly to himself as he thought about what Sam would do if she was ever forced to wear that much pink ever again.

_Having fun?_ Karenna's voice asked dryly in his head.

_Karenna! You promised you wouldn't watch!_

_Promises are meant to be broken. _Danny sighed.

_Karenna, you infuriate me._

_I know. It's fun. _Danny could visualize Karenna wearing a wicked smile on her face as she projected that.

_I'm going to watch the rest of the memory now. You can watch, but NOT A PEEP FROM YOU!_

_Okay, Danny, don't have a cow!_ Danny readjusted his position in the leafy pile from which he was watching, and watched the familiar memory unfold.

"Hi, Danny! Look, I'm a fairy princess!" Sam said, grinning, as Danny drew closer.

"I'm Superman, I'm strong!" Danny said, imitating the deep voice of Superman. Sam giggled. Then the two friends set out with their parents in search of more candy.

As their candy baskets grew delightfully heavy, the two children slowed down. Finally, they headed back to Sam's house to rest.

After their parents checked their candy, Sam and the younger Danny started a mega candy pig out.

"Hey, Sam, wanna kiss?" the eight-year old Danny asked, holding out a foil-wrapped Hershey's Kiss. Sam took the kiss and ate it.

"Hey, you know how fairy princesses always have a handsome prince kiss them?" Sam asked.

"Yeah. So?"

"So, do you wanna be my handsome prince?" The young Danny leaned over and kissed Sam's cheek. Sam giggled again.

"Of course I'll be your handsome prince. Forever."

"Forever?" Sam asked, just to be sure.

"Forever."

_Awwww..._Karenna's voice came into Danny's head again.

_Karenna. I'm warning you now. SHUT UP!_"

There was a flash of light...

A/N: Semi-cliffhanger there. Writer's block has finally lifted somewhat. Yes, when I say porthole, I do mean portal. I could never figure out how to spell it, though, so I thought it would just be easier to say porthole. So, thanks, enigmatic penguin, for finally teaching me how to spell! LOL. Next chapter will probably be the last for this story. Review!


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

...and then Dark Danny appeared in front of him. Danny could see nothing, but Dark Danny as he went ghost, prepared to fight.

"You fool." Dark Danny said in a low voice. "Didn't you think I might have a backup power source? It's not as strong as the Darkness, but it will do." Then he fired a mega-photon blast at his younger self. Danny dodged it, fired a photon blast of his own, and reached for the Fenton Thermos. But just as his fingertips brushed the cool metal of the thermos, a second photon blast knocked him off his feet.

After a second of lying dizzily on the ground, Danny got back on his feet, only to have yet another photon blast knock him down again.

_He's too strong. _Danny thought dizzily, struggling to keep consciousness. _He'll kill me. This is the end. _Then a familiar voice floated through his head. Karenna's voice.

_Do your ghostly wail! It's the only thing that can save you now!_

_Karenna...I'm too weak...I can't do it._

_TRY! _Karenna urged. _Think of me; think of Tucker, think of Sam!_ _Think about all the people you love who's lives are at stake here!_

Danny thought. An image of Sam popped into his head, a picture of Sam laughing, smiling, hugging him. He had to do this...for Sam.

Danny screamed a ghostly scream, feeling the power rise into his body. But Dark Danny quickly retaliated with a ghost wail of his own. For a few minutes, the ghost wails battled with each other, one never quite overpowering the other. Then Danny's power began to run out. He felt exhausted, lightheaded, and a little nauseous. He wailed for as long as he could, feeling the scream falter, the air in his lungs running out. Then, for the first time, he felt the force of Dark Danny's wail pressing upon him. His head began to spin, his vision became blurry. Then the last thing he saw was Dark Danny's evil grin before he passed out.

"Danny? Danny! Are you okay?" This time Karenna's voice seemed to come from somewhere in front of him, rather then inside his own head. Danny struggled to consciousness and saw Karenna coming out of the dark shadows. But instead of the humanoid, wheelchair-bound Karenna, Danny saw the ghost Karenna, the _real_ Karenna, the one he'd seen in the past memory. When she saw that he was awake, she smiled. Her eyes sparkled with jubilation.

"Danny! You did it! Your ghostly wail beat Dark Danny! And best of all...it set me free. Thank you so much! Now...to go back to the future." And Karenna slipped a time medal around Danny's neck. There was another bright flash of light, and then Danny was back in present-day Amity Park, seeing as he hadn't seen it in months: with the sun shining brightly upon the town.

"Danny! You did it! You beat the Darkness and Dark Danny!" Sam came running towards him, throwing her arms around Danny. Then she kissed him gently on the lips. They both blushed. Tucker sat a ways away, smiling awkwardly.

"I always knew you two would end up together." Karenna's voice echoed around the room. The three teens glanced around.

"Karenna? Where are you?" Sam asked in puzzlement.

"I cannot be with you anymore. I must return to my own realm...with my father. Goodbye, everyone." And then the voice was gone, as quickly as it had come.

"You know," Danny said softly to Sam. "You helped me defeat the Darkness, both by going to your happiest memory, and...I thought of you before I did that ghostly wail." Sam smiled.

"Aww...that's so sweet."

"By the way, what _was_ your happiest memory?" Sam didn't miss a beat before replying.

"The day I met you." Danny laughed out loud.

"That was my happiest memory, too!" And then they kissed again, their romance only the beginning of the legacy that was left by Karenna Clockwork.

A/N: My second completed story on FFN! I didn't really mean for this story to be DxS, but it turned out to be more DxS then ever! I guess my fingers and my mind know what they're doing. Now I can focus on Energy Vibe, Halfa All the Way, and my other stories. Read and review please!


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